Goodbye Old Friend and Thank You
by nattikur cullen
Summary: Suddenly Bella could see it: her whole life spread out in front of her. A life with Edward. The tree had been there through the hardest of times, but now she didn’t need it anymore. She squeezed her eyes shut. Goodbye old friend, she thought, and thanks.
1. The Story

**AN: This is just a little something I wrote a while ago. I found it in one of my old folders. I hope you enjoy it. Please comment.**

**Also, I'm a bit paranoid, which is why I rated it T. It's probably not, but I didn't want to get in any trouble.  
**

**Thanks, nattikur.**

Goodbye Old Friend. And Thank You.

The large oak tree stood there tall and proud, as if it was showing off it's strength and structure. Bella giggled softly as she ran a hand across the tree's thick trunk, her hair whipping across her eyes as she ran in circles around it. It was only when the wind threatened to pull up her skirt that she stopped and sat down, her back resting against the bark of her tree.

"It's been a good few years." She stated loudly as she began to collect the daises that patterned around her and link them to make a chain. Today was one of the rare sunny days in this small, inconsequential town in Washington State. Another gust of wind swept by, making the large oak tree whisper in agreement. Bella smiled and sighed softly. She shut her eyes and rested her head on the wood. Once one of the children in her class had asked her why this tree was so important to her. Bella had not been able to think of an answer at the time, but now she knew why. Throughout her childhood this tree had been her only friend. When her mother remarried to Phil, a minor league baseball player, she wanted to move around with him. So Bella had moved to live with her father, Charlie, in the rainy town of Forks. She had only been five at the time, and she already detested Forks. One day, when exploring the thick forests that seemed to be everywhere, she discovered the tree. When the children at school ignored her she would run to the tree and it would make everything better and when she missed her mother and her home she would come to the tree, climb up its branches and try to clear her head. She had just never fit in, but somehow her tree made that all better. Since she'd found it, she had promised herself never to tell anyone about her tree, and she had kept her promise. It was her special place.

It was the familiar voice that made her jump up and straighten her skirt as the wind blew the frills of it again.

"Edward!" She cried, embracing the man in front of her. "You're back early!"

The man was young, only 17 or so at the most, with messy auburn hair and startling green eyes. His expression was plastered with the joy of seeing Bella again, his love for her clear in his eyes.

Edward chuckled quietly as he ran his fingers through Bella's long, messy, muddy brown hair. "I thought I'd surprise you!" He replied, his voice light with laughter.

"And you did." Bella grinned as she slipped her hand into his, entwining their fingers. She quickly began to lead him out of the forest and down a narrow country road, away from her tree.

Bella took a deep breath before turning to the boy beside her, his beauty piercing her yet again. Once again, she considered telling him about her tree. "Edward?" She asked, her voice unsure.

"Yes, Bells?" He turned his head to face her, his eyes sweetly curious.

"Never mind," She quickly muttered, turning away. Chicken, she told herself. But she knew why she wouldn't tell him. She was still so scared that he'd think she was crazy and wouldn't want to see her again. It wasn't really normal, was it? Having a tree as a best friend.

Edward was even more confused now but he simply bent down and kissed Bella on the top of her head. "Whatever it is, you can tell me." He assured her.

"No," Bella shook her head, still looking down at the ground. "It was nothing." Then, finally, she turned back to face Edward and stopped her casual pace, her hand falling from Edward's as her whole body swerved around. "Edward," Bella began her brown yes anxious. "I love you."

His answering smile was dazzling. He slid his hand under her chin, lifting it up slightly. "I love you too." He assured her. Then, slowly but surely, he inched his head closer and closer until his cool, hard lips pressed firmly onto Bella's. He pulled away for a moment. "No one could love you more than I do," he told her.

"That's not true," Bella grinned, her past worried forgotten in an instant. "I can."

"We love each other equally. How's that?" Edward asked, chuckling lightly.

"Nope. I still love you more." Bella insisted, his lips pursing.

Chuckling louder this time, Edward began to brush his lips up and down her cheekbone is a slow, careful movement. Then, he moved them to her ear. "That's what you think."

Bella felt a shiver run down her spine as she shut her eyes and turned her head, her lips looking for his. They weren't hard to find and suddenly they were kissing again.

After a while, Edward moved back again. He stared into her eyes for a few moments before asking, "Now, what did you want to tell me before?"

Bella blinked suddenly at the memory of anything happening before that kiss. "Oh, that." She said quietly, nibbling her lip. "I told you, never mind. It really doesn't matter." And it didn't matter. Not any more. She'd already said her goodbye's to the tree. Now it was time to move on. She had Edward now, she didn't need anything. "You're all that matters to me now." She confessed.

"Well, I can't argue with that." Edward chuckled again – he was in an extremely good mood this morning – and pulled Bella to him, embracing her, once again, in a kiss.

Suddenly Bella could see it: her whole life spread out in front of her. A life with Edward. The tree had been there through the hardest of times, but now she didn't need it anymore. She squeezed her eyes shut. Goodbye old friend, she thought, and thank you.


	2. AN: Comment Replies

**AUTHORS NOTE: COMMENT REPLIES**

_**Gpaw12**_**: I'm glad you like it. Really, I am. I wasn't very sure about it, because I thought it was a little bit undeveloped and I wasn't so sure about the ending. But I was planning, if I got good reviews, to maybe turn it into a full scale story. But for now it is just a cliffhanger.**

**_Alice cullen geek_: Thank you. And I suppose you're right about Jacob. I never thought of it like that, though. It's very intresting. Maybe, subconciously, I may have based the tree off of Jacob. And I wasn't sure if I should make it full scale or not, either. I probably won't, unless I'm completely convinced too. And thank you for the review.  
**


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